This summer an agenda full of events is planned to commemorate the 100 years of history of the boat, which was built by Astilleros Ballester in 1924.
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The Balearic Islands continue to celebrate their centenary with various activities in Portocolom
The Department of the Environment, Rural Affairs and Sports is continuing with the events to commemorate the centenary of the Balear planned for this year. To celebrate the anniversary, Portocolom is hosting a programme of activities these days in which the Balear is the protagonist, as the emblematic vessel was dedicated for many years to trawling in this Mallorcan fishing village.
In this context, the main events to commemorate the Balear’s 100th anniversary took place yesterday, Friday, organised by the Association of Traditional Boats of Portocolom, with two conferences and a popular sardine dinner on the harbour esplanade.
At 6 p.m., the conference “Volta a Mallorca” was given by the Maritime Museum Consortium. Then, at 8 p.m., the researcher Pere Oliver Reus gave a talk on “La pesca amb les barques de bou”, a type of fishing practice on which the oceanographer is an expert. The day’s celebrations concluded with a dinner on the quayside esplanade, in front of the Balearic Islands, and live music.
The second vice-president and councillor for the Environment, Rural Affairs and Sports, Pedro Bestard, recalled that the Balear “is a boat that is very dear to the residents of Portocolom, because it fished for many years in this town, and that is why we wanted to celebrate this small tribute”.
Summer agenda full of commemorative events
On the 30th of July, the Balear is scheduled to take part in one of the official training sessions of the Copa del Rey Mapfre 2024, and on the 26th of July and the 1st and 2nd of August, in three stages of the start and finish of the Sailing Tour of Mallorca.
The events will continue in September, with the participation of the Balear in the Diada de Vela Latina, held at the Club Náutico de Cala Gamba on the 15th and 16th of September, where various events have been organised in honour of the Mallorcan vessel.
The vessel, which celebrates its 100th anniversary in 2024, was built in Palma by the Ballester shipyard in 1924 for trawling. In 1998, the Consell de Mallorca declared the Balear an asset of cultural interest in the monument category.
The Balear actively fished for more than 70 years, first in Palma and, from 1980 onwards, in Portocolom, when the Font family sold it to a local fisherman. The boat settled in this port and continued fishing until the end of its useful life in the mid-1990s.